Judge Orders U.S. to Release Names of 9/11 Detainees
The ruling by Judge Gladys Kessler of Federal District Court dealt a significant setback to the government's policy of secret detentions, mostly of immigrants, in connection with the Sept. 11 investigation. Judge Kessler rejected the Justice Department's arguments that disclosure of the names would impede its investigation of terrorists.

She said that while it was the obligation of the executive branch to ensure the physical security of American citizens, "the first priority of the judicial branch must be to ensure that our government always operates within the statutory and constitutional constraints which distinguish a democracy from a dictatorship."

"Unquestionably," she added, "the public's interest in learning the identity of those arrested and detained is essential to verifying whether the government is operating within the bounds of law."
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/08/03/politics/03DETA.html